Kutuny plots coup against Murkomen

Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen appeared to be facing some opposition Wednesday night with several Rift Valley MPs vowing to remove him as the chairman of their caucus.

The Nation spoke to six MPs from the Rift Valley who blamed Mr Murkomen for the political problems which are apparently facing Mr Ruto’s 2022 presidential prospects. Some suggested that talk of his removal is part of the power struggles in the region on who should become substantive deputy to the DP.

It emerged yesterday that the MPs were concerned with the way Mr Murkomen, who is also the Senate Majority Leader, has steered the Rift Valley Parliamentary Group since he took its leadership after the 2017 General Election.

RUTO'S LIABILITY

They accuse him of having a patronising attitude, running the show without consultation and addressing the members of the caucus as if “he is the deputy president”, issues Cherangany MP Joshua Kutuny said are hurting the DP’s 2022 presidential chance.

“Mr Murkomen is a liability to the deputy president. Our eyes are focused on 2022 so that the DP becomes the President but the senator is working against all this. Kenyans should disregard such leaders,” he said.

However, Mr Murkomen dismissed claims of his removal, saying “allegations being bandied around” are a figment of Mr Kuttuny’s imagination.

WEIRD CLAIMS

He confirmed that the group was to have a meeting at Weston Hotel late yesterday but insisted the question of his removal, or lack of it, was not part of the agenda.

“You can come and see whether there will be such a thing on the agenda. Mr Kuttuny is an expert in making weird claims but he doesn’t attend regular meetings of the caucus. I doubt whether he will attend,” he said.

The senator has in the recent past, since August 2017, emerged as one of the strongest figures in Mr Ruto’s circle. The fact that he is under siege shows the problems in the Ruto wing of Jubilee. Curiously, Mr Murkomen gets into trouble at the same time reports are emerging that the bliss in Jubilee party marriage is wearing off over President Kenyatta’s sustained war on corruption.

EMBRACE RAILA

Asked whether the DP had sanctioned Mr Murkomen’s removal, Mr Kutuny said the plan had nothing to do with the DP. “It is about members of the caucus and what they want. If they think that their chairman is not performing in line with their expectations, then they have a right to remove him. The DP is not in this,” he said.

He insisted that the senator is driving a wedge between the President and his deputy with "his endless and careless talk".

“During Narc regime, there were leaders who whenever they opened their mouths, President Kibaki lost votes,” Mr Kutuny said adding that the DP’s camp should be more appreciative of the handshake and embrace Opposition leader Mr Raila Odinga.

COALITION INTACT

He also questioned the senator’s constant assertion that the handshake will cripple Jubilee yet the President, his deputy and the Leader of Majority in the National Assembly Aden Duale, who ranks above Mr Murkomen, are clear that the coalition is intact.

“If the bosses have assured us that the coalition is well, where is Murkomen getting all this from?”

Recently, President Kenyatta issued a directive that all finance and procurement officers in the public service to step aside pending fresh vetting. The president’s order was triggered by rampant corruption in the public service.

LEGAL STANDING

The President also said that he was ready to undergo a lifestyle audit and challenged his deputy and other public servants to also offer themselves. However, Mr Murkomen, who appeared on a show in one of the local TV stations, opposed the President’s move saying it lacked legal standing and that it targets his deputy.

Already, Public Service and Youth Principal Secretary Lilian Mbogo and National Youth Service director general Richard Ndubai have been charged in court over the loss of public money at the National Youth Service (NYS).

DISGRUNTLED

 “The more we put so many hurdles on the handshake, the more we politicians from Rift Valley are seen as anti-unity. The more we oppose the lifestyle audits the more questions are raised against us than answers. My colleagues from the Rift Ralley should retreat on their opposition to the running of the affairs of the government.”

The MP also blamed Mr Murkomen of unnecessarily criticising the President in the war against corruption saying that Mr Murkomen doesn’t speak for the people of Rift Valley.

The other disgruntled members also accused Murkomen of pretending to speak for the Deputy President.

ELABORATING

“He is fond of making statements that can land us in big trouble without consulting us. We want the President and his deputy to take charge and rein in this man because we have been patient enough,” an MP said.

However, Mr Murkomen insisted that the sentiments being propagated by the MP are small issues. “There are other things big we are focusing on,” he said without elaborating.